#dorian genshin

[m1d-45]

the rule of threes

summary: “subject two” was created in the image of a god he could never fulfill. how does that turn out for him? (spoilers, not well.)

word count: 3.4k

-> warnings: major spoilers for albedo lore, rhine is Not A Good Person, uh ig allusions to gore but nothing bad, incoherency in General

-> gn reader (you/yours)

taglist: @samarill || @thenyxsky || @valeriele3 || @shizunxie || @boba-is-a-soup || @yuus3n || @esthelily || @turningfrogsgay || @cupandtea24 || @genshin-impacts-me || @chaoticfivesworld || @raaawwwr

< masterlist >

“have you ever tried to create life from nothing?”

for a woman of science, rhinedottir was acting rather scatterbrained, frantically pulling bottles from shelves. each of them was twisted, and eventually returned to their place, the small plate above them marked with red.

“to sprout a seed with no water, to make a flower bloom within your hand?” it was a wonder she was still talking to him, crazed eyes always searching for his. did she think he’d run off? it wasn’t as if he could, with the doors bolted shut. “impossible. impossible. the slightest of changes in the ley lines ruins everything- have not one of these survived?”

that was new. he’d thought the lab was low enough no elements flowed, or at the very least the rest of the city blocked it. that’s what he’d always believed, as it was the only solution for his failure.

or was it him that was the problem? he didn’t know. he may have been her first success, but he was also her first failure.

bottles stopped returning to shelves, glass shattering on the floor and sending thick sludge all over the floor. fragile bones cracked on impact, half formed bodies crumpling with splats that made him cringe.

it wasn’t rare to see her so angry, but it was rare for her to take it out on her work. still, he did his best to ignore her, bringing his legs onto his chair and twiddling a pen between his fingers. it didn’t make it easier to block out the sound, but he did feel better when he could focus on tracing a square over and over, trying to keep the lines as thin as possible.

“stupid, stupid stupid stupid! i told them this would be revolutionary, but all they think about is their god-“ their what? “-and they don’t even try to listen to me! of course they didn’t, because what do i know? i’m only the-… the…”

he did look up, then, seeing her staring at a bright bottle. at least a hundred shattered bottles lay at her feet, yet she didn’t seem to notice, transfixed by the single flask in her hand.

“the greatest alchemist in the world,” she whispered.

all at once, she turned to him, boots crunching over flesh and bone as if it were nothing. he winced back slightly when the squish of her boot made some of the sludge splash up, landing halfway up the leg of his chair.

“look.” he didn’t want to. her eyes were wide and crazed and he was terrified. the bottle itself was harmless, the organism inside curled underneath and far from consciousness, but she.. “he lived.”

he gripped his pen tightly, forcing a nod.

“he’ll be perfect.” that’s unrealistic. “i just know it. look at him.” you’re being irrational. “he needs a name.” you don’t even know if he’ll survive.

she walked away and began to pace, seemingly not noticing the tens of half-formed corpses beneath her feet. “a name, a name…”

what a sight. for someone so set on creating life, she disrespected so many.

he looked back down to his paper, continuing his exercises. around the square, then the other way, then the hexagon. the lines grew thicker as the amount of sides increased, his pen slipping on the page. still, he kept his hand as steady as possible, breathing slowly. he could just ignore her. it’s not like she’d ask for his input, so he can just focus on the shapes, keeping each angle as sharp-

“hey!” his pen slipped as his shoulders jumped, dark ink soaking through the page. he turned, and found her frowning at him, bottle clutched in her hand. “pay attention. this could be groundbreaking; whatever you’re doing doesn’t matter in the face of perfect alchemy.”

he was doing as he was told. practicing his lines, slowly taming the tremors in his hands, stopping every half hour to train with the ball she’d given him for that exact purpose. ten squeezes with one hand, ten with the other, ten between the palms, and a quick massage of the muscles. as he was asked.

“i’ve decided on a name, if you care.” she turned back to the bottle, all traces of anger dissipating. she smiled at the bottle, carefully twisting it in her hands. “he will be nigredo.. the first stage of my magnum opus.”

his eyes flicked to the bottle, a small ember of resentment burning in his chest.

“as you wish, master.”

‘nigredo’ didn’t last long. within a month or so, his bottle blackened, eventually cracking altogether. he was there when she came back, finding the bottle leaking on her desk. she’d panicked, frightened, her concern eventually bubbling into anger.

the bottle had hit the wall just beside his head. something soft trickled down his cheek, landing on his paper. he lifted his hand, feeling dust fall from a small slit in his skin. he looked over to rhinedottir in shock, but she wasn’t looking. she was pacing angrily, glaring at the paperwork on the desks around her like it would be the next thing thrown. he didn’t want to bother her, he didn’t, but whatever sand was pouring through his skin was making him panic.

a breath in, a breath out. she didn’t seem any less upset than the last time he looked.

“..master?”

his hands flinched tighter when she whipped to look at him, his pen skidding across the page again.

“what?”

“my.. my cheek.” he took his hand away from it, but the dust continued to fall. “the bottle hit me.”

she stared, confused. “what bottle?”

“nigredo’s.” his chest burned, bitter, but he pushed aside his feelings. “i.. don’t believe this is normal, is it?”

another stretch of silence, her eyes flicking between his and the wound on his cheek.

“why would i do that?”

“i’m not suggesting you’d hit me on purpose-“

“why would i throw him? no, i.. i was going to fix him. i wouldn’t do that.”

it was his turn to stare, shocked. “but… you did.”

the dust hitting his page was the only sound in the room, neither of them moving.

“don’t be ridiculous,” she eventually said. “i wouldn’t hurt him like that. i have no reason. why would i waste so much of my time like that? all my effort into imitating the div-….”

“…you were angry. people say and do uninthings when they’re-“

“and what would you know about people?”

that was cruel.

his synthetic heart beat in his ribs like it wanted to flee, the dust continuing to pour from his skin in a stark reminder of his inhumanity.

“…master-“

“i’m leaving. i expect this place to be clean when i come back.”

he didn’t even flinch when she slammed the door. such things were regular occurrences.

“…what’s this, master?”

“he has a name. durin.”

another one with a name. when would he earn his?

“i see. my apologies.”

“whatever. go say hello.”

“pardon?”

“you heard me.”

sand was still trickling from his cheek, a brief wave coming quicker when he frowned. “master, i don’t think-“

“he doesn’t bite, it’s fine.”

and to her credit, he hadn’t.

(“rhinedottir! what have you done?”)

(“i’ve done many things. could you clarify?”)

(“w-what’s this?” his body was dead, but he still felt the way durin grumbled and hissed. “what have you made? we’re willing to look past a lot of your experiments, but this-!”

(“watch your tone. he’s perfect.”)

(“rhine-“)

(“why can’t you all just trust me? you act like i’m touting myself around like a god-“)

(“you are. your hubris will get you killed-“)

(“by who? what? who’ll dare to touch me? …nobody. exactly. nobody, not even that thing in the sky that calls itself the creator.”)

(“rhine-!”)

(“no. get out. you’re disrupting my work.”)

(“you know how celestia is, they’ve already started approaching the gates-“)

(“then let them come. you’ve seen my work. we’ll survive the battle.”)

(“what of the innocents? what of the kids and the elderly, those that did nothing wrong? do they deserve to die for you?”)

(“…if i deserve to die, then nobody deserves to live.”)

in his opinion, there’s only one thing worse than dying: figuring out you hadn’t.

the constant beat of a dragon’s heart had finally dulled, and with it his uncertain stasis ended. he was brought back to life, surrounded by bones that weren’t his, unsure which way was up.

the bones were tough to break, but a small sliver off the end made it easier to cut through flesh. he didn’t know why he was alive, or how, all he knew was the red blood oozing around his hands and a drive in his chest that told him to survive. his skin was hot, his clothes clinging to him and adding to the feeling of being trapped, the sludge around him unrelenting in its quest to keep him there, inside, stuck in the chest of this beast-

the air was cold. his heart was colder. the ground was hard where he fell, humming with energy from the core he just escaped. he looked up at the heart, his own beating frantically, and watched the space that he had carved for himself seal up, as if he was never there to begin with. the blood and flesh left on his clothes—he was still wearing the same thing from that day, torn and flimsy—soaked into the ground, making the earth burn a vibrant red.

durin had died too, just as nigredo had. he was the only one left. the only one left of rhinedottir’s creations, accused of killing the first and nearly dying to the second.

or…

well, he certainly wouldn’t be surprised if she’d kept her other projects quiet. he was hardly allowed to leave the lab, let alone the palace, so who knew what she was up to? it could be any number of things, knowing her.

he pushed himself up on shaky limbs, uncharacteristic anger fueling his thoughts. he never hated rhinedottir before, but now that he was betrayed, what point did he have to try and care for her? she never gave him her love, so why did she deserve his?

with a hand on the wall—flesh melded into stone, he didn’t think about how long durin had been sitting here lest he be paralyzed by time—he began to stumble toward the exit of the cave, his legs stiff. he felt like when he was first created, shaking and confused, except now he knew that he was weak due to muscle atrophy and not his nerves struggling to fire.

(“there you are,” she had smiled. “let me help you down, i’m sure it’ll be hard on your own.”)

(it was. he clung to her as his lifeline, hands shaking and knees wobbling. the room was bright, loud, his mind pinging from object to object as he reached for anything he recognized. how strange, to be formed fully conscious and yet without any knowledge of the world around you. no words to describe the softness of the cot she sat him on, no name for her eyes as she gently picked up his hand, tracing the tremors.)

(“are you scared?” he didn’t know what that was. the lab was confusing, emotions he didn’t know how to handle bubbling and overflowing. “i’ll take care of you, it’s okay.” a hand to her chest, a soft call of her name, the first word he ever knew one that belonged to her.)

(he’d done his best to learn to say it, but he was imperfect. his hands quaked, his tongue was stiff, and by the time he’d managed to say it in full she had corrected him to ‘master.’ he only learned the concept of time when he was told he was using too much of hers, sequestered to a corner of the room where she didn’t have to look at him.)

(maybe that was why he wasn’t given a name. why would he have one when he couldn’t even recite it?)

with a shake of his head the memory was cleared, mind once again centered on the cave. perhaps he should sit, try to clear the fog over his head… the air was getting colder the further he went from the heart, white dust flickering in the air. ash? no, too bright…

he lowered himself to the ground carefully, leaning against stone. already he was tired, and he’d barely made it halfway out. how long was he… not asleep, perhaps unconscious? he didn’t know.

something was—howling? calling? what was the word? was all that time spent with a dictionary was for naught?—loud, crying out and filling the whole cave. maybe whatever was moving the white… what was it? it looked soft where it piled on the ground, yet to survive in the cold air… all of it melted before it reached him, but he wanted to know what it was.

(curiosity.)

the ground was rocky, but he had plenty of practice in pulling himself where his legs could not take him. across the lab, into a chair, to the shelf when his master was too busy to get it herself. he guided himself around a sharp stone, stopping a few inches away from the substance. already some of it was beginning to land on his clothes, settling into the creases as he pulled his legs up to his side to sit more comfortably. he lifted his hand, watching as a few of the particles landed in his palm. they were small, details too fine for him to fully pick out. they melted slowly in his hand, fading away, but many more soon took their place. they were cold, but he hardly felt the chill anymore, transfixed by the sight. they had to have a name, right? something soft, to adequately describe the gentle fall when they weren’t whipped around by whatever force lay outside the cave, had to…

“have you never seen snow before?”

snow. snow. ah, that was a nice word for it.

“i haven’t.”

he looks up, finally, and sees another man standing there. he has light hair and a blue shirt, a white lab coat overtop. an odd orange crystal sits at his collar, just below a diamond shaped mark on his skin in the same color.

“who are you?”

they both ask the question at the same time, and he’s surprised by how hollow he feels when asked. he doesn’t have a name, not even a designation or title. anger began to spark in him again, but was cut short by the other man putting a hand to his chest.

“i am the chief alchemist of the knights of favonius, here to determine any changes resulting from the uncharacteristic ley line activity recently.” an alchemist… his master was an alchemist, wasn’t she? was she still alive? maybe she knew this man- could he see her again? would she remember? maybe him being eaten by durin was a fluke, maybe she’d say sorry and maybe his survival was enough proof of his worth that he’d get what he’d longed for for so long.

“my name is albedo. what is yours?”

the world stopped turning. the snow stopped falling. everything froze, his world sharpening to a pin, his breath pausing as he looked into the eyes of the man with a name.

the creation with a name. albedo.

“…her magnum opus.”

albedo blinked, but didn’t seem all that surprised. “so you are another of master’s students.”

‘student.’ he was lucky she afforded him a spare pen, but he was taught?

(what did he know? he wanted to know too. what did his master do? what else was there to learn? how many books of knowledge existed beyond the four walls he’d grown to hate? could he finally put the sights to the names? what was the sun and how did it rise, what was a day and how did it end, what was the world and how did it work?)

(curiosity.)

“how interesting. she told me of a few trials before me, but i didn’t expect you to be-“

“were you created too?”

say no. say no and tell him he wasn’t the only one. say no and say it wasn’t his fault. say no and say he wasn’t a failure.

“…yes. i was.”

anger was bubbling and beginning to rise, irrational and yet uncontrollable. he shouldn’t be angry at albedo, he’d done nothing wrong, but his heart refused to obey.

“did she speak of me?”

“i don’t know. she spoke about durin, sometimes, and mentioned one of my predecessors. are you nigredo?”

nigredo died. nigredo died, and yet he was worth more of her time.

how?

what made him so imperfect? what was wrong with him being a first attempt? that didn’t mean failed. first didn’t mean failed, it meant first.

he was the first. had she not completed what she set out to do? synthetic life, an abiotic creation, proof of her knowledge and ability, proof it could be done at all. what part of him made him so inherently worthless? why did she want perfection? why couldn’t he be perfection?

albedo walked closer, more details coming into focus. the buckles on his coat—not a lab coat, then, or perhaps an altered one?—and the lines on his boots clear enough he could see them. when he crouched in front of him, he could see the gem on his collar sway slightly, the spikes on its inlay now visible. he leaned away, one hand tightening into a fist where he’d set it in the snow, the cold sinking into his palm. it rushed up his arm and into his chest, settling right next to the burn of his anger.

“when did you get your name?”

“when i was first able to ask for it.” albedo took his hand despite how he tried to pull it away, easily overpowering him. “interesting. you don’t appear to have any body heat of your own, and yet are shivering.”

(anger.)

“are you scared?”

(rage.)

“has she sent you? is that why you’re here?”

“not at all.” he let his hand fall, idly swiping a bit of snow from his shirt. his hand was warm. “i came here to inspect durin’s heart. did you come from there?”

(righteous fury.)

the snow in his hand packed together, the swirl of flaming anger and frigid resentment making his chest heaven as he took in air he didn’t need.

“i was eaten by him.”

“you survived being eaten by a dragon? a commendable feat. did you dig your way out?”

with hands that shook and eyes that couldn’t cry, supported on weakened legs and with bones barely able to keep me up. were you fed as often as i was? you look much less wiry.

“is that why your hands are shaky? perhaps i should take you to my lab…”

yes, the lab, take me there and fix everything that’s wrong with me, give me writing exercises and assure me it’ll pass, that i’m something broken, that you know better, that i was never and would never be what you wanted or strived for. tell me often enough and i’ll believe it, i’ll believe you when you say i’m wrong, believe you when you say it won’t hurt, believe you when you promised it would be okay, for you were the master and i were the slave-

a string that wasn’t his snapped, another’s anger channeled through him. all he could see was red, a chalk heart in his ears demanding he hit before it was returned. who, he didn’t know, nor why, a torrent of thoughts released through him, years of anger melting the ice around them.

albedo didn’t deserve his anger, not really. but his master did, and he was the closest thing.

[pixiltalks]

Can't sleep. Post Dorian.

[chitter17]

albedo and his three brothers. some headcanons and design elements under the cut :)

---

albedo, compared to the others, has the yellowest blonde hair - with droopy blue eyes, freckles, and his signature golden star birthmark on his neck. i didnt change his design much because i think his current design is already very nice !!

his personality is already layed out in the game so i didnt change much! hes reserved, but not the socially anxious type. he just prefers not to deal with social interaction because he thinks its easier that way. he doesn't hold himself back, and just says whats on his mind (and/or asks for assistance when needed.) he has a very professional attitude on the outside, but a soft and comforting nature to his close friends and family.

this is a contrast from dorian, or "rubedo", who has more platinum blonde hair, and purple-red eyes. he also has moles, instead of freckles. his marking is more of a purple-red color, and has more points to it. (he can also hide and change it!) his hair is also unbraided, but in a ponytail. he has somewhat of a permanent scowl on his face, and his eyes are downturned while albedo's are more droopy. i think his real name is rubedo, to match with albedo (both are stages in alchemy) but after rhinedottir abandons him, he changes it to "dorian" to match his brother, durin. (his name is dorian in the games files, so i made a story to go with it. but i also believe he's inspired by the story "the picture of dorian gray")

his personality is more brash & brazen compared to albedo, as he has some un-resolved baggage surrounding rhinedottir abandoning him in durin's stomach (aka: the dragon in dragonspine). he resents albedo for having the life he couldn't have despite being created by rhinedottir first. he was merely the testing stage of albedo's existence. he doesn't have a vision, and he cant control the elements, but he miraculously has powers of his own. he uses durin's blood (or crimson agate) which manifests much like albedo's geo element. his power is strongest when in dragonspine near durin's heart, so if he went to mondstadt city, it would be much weaker.

whopperflower, or just "whoppy", is dorian's creation that he made from studying albedos books and notes (that he stole, by the way.) so obviously, i gave him cryo whopperflower traits. his design is more similar to albedo because dorian projected his issues onto him a bit ... whoppy has white markings on his neck and forehead that match other flowers, and his leaf colors extend onto his hair :) he's fully capable of mimicking something else, but his true form is a whopperflower - and i wanted to make all of them have distinctive designs, so i gave him a little sprout on his head :)

whoppy's personality is quiet and obedient. since he was created by dorian, he listens to pretty much everything he says and has a hard time gaining his own free will. dorian doesn't control him after the fight in shadows admist snowstorms, so he still has to learn how to think for himself... he also wields the element of cryo without a vision, because he's a whopperflower :-)

the last one is what i like to call "glitchbedo" and he's based off of this glitch. i think it would be interesting if he was an unknown identity from the abyss, who roams around dragonspine, before he saw albedo and tried to steal his appearance. albedo finds him roaming around mindlessly one day and pretty much takes him in. when trying to make him talk however, loud static noises come out instead. (i got this idea from this comic!)

he's just ... a black void?? that's it. his head is tilted permanently for some reason. he can't write or speak but he can understand tevyats language. he's a very mysterious guy... im still trying to figure out how i want to characterize him -_- something like paper jam dipper from gravity falls, maybe ??

[fattyaly]

Oh hey there’s a ship i got hyperixated at because of my rp, that def never happened before, oh wow. 

And that is _not_ Albedo btw. And I can write a legit paper why they would work.

Do I have another thousand sketches? Maybe idk i don’t even show these to my rp partner cause ???

[cavity-core]

Complex Stuff

[spacecat12]

[land-of-glass-and-spires]

[a-softer-teyvat]

(gravelly voices, no common ground) ✦

[otaku553]

Subject 2 goodnotes portrait :)

Here are some details I’m proud of!

[popsigills]

The jealousy of Subject Two

[nikkipettt]

Rhine: Of all my children, he (Albedo) was the only one left.

Subject two:

[tiniloaf]

[kimeoshi]

"Experience is merely the name men gave to their mistakes."

[cavity-core]

Satisfying Salad

Chapter Six

I post a lot of different stuff that is totally consumable for minors, but this space is not intended for minors, so if you fall in that category, please navigate it responsibly and respectfully... on that note.. keep scrolling to the next post kids. ^ ^

Despite the tag, this is not Kaebedo, I’m shipping Kaeya with the Fellflower because I’m an absolute psychopath... I call it crack but it’s my otp idk what’s wrong with me, cryo sugoi.

It is still updating but you can read the full fic here.

I keep forgetting to keep posting here. I just posted chapter 8 though so I finally remembered 🎉

Last night had been hectic and disorienting for Subject Three. He remembered passing out on Kaeya’s bed, nestled against the thick duvet, but he’d woken up in a bush. As tempting as it had been to burrow into the ground right there for a nap, there was no way he could do that! His master sent him to take Albedo’s place in Mondstadt, and even if he’d messed up a little he couldn’t just go back to Dragonspine already.

Walking on his stupid human legs was so slow, but luckily he wasn’t in Mondstadt and he wasn’t under cover, so he was free to burrow into the ground and dig his way back to the city. Being able to take root and expel the alcohol from his body, as well as just being able to feel the dirt all around him made him feel infinitely better, he was ready to take this mission on again with gusto!

The only problem was… he didn’t have his clothes. As far as he knew, they were still with Kaeya. Captain Kaeya… he definitely wanted to see him again— oh, but he knew of Subject Three’s real identity. He helped hide it from the alchemy bench man though, so maybe it didn’t bother him! Subject Three could be just as good as any dumb human or homonculus!

Getting into the actual city without his human disguise was much harder, but he was well equipped to take on the challenge. Although the average WhopperFlower lacked the ability to change much beyond its corolla while its body remained hidden beneath the ground, his master’s alchemic intervention had done more than alter his appearance to that of a human, but rather it had made his entire body more malleable to disguises so to speak. Not only did it allow him to mimic with his entire body but he was not limited by size… within reason anyway; the greater the difference in size, the more taxing it was on his body, as he had so aptly shown last night while drunk.

Smaller was easier than bigger, but everything took practice. The crystal flies that had been drifting around him when he’d awoken served as excellent inspiration to float gently over the bridge and up, up over the wall, never arousing any suspicion as such a harmless creature. It was convenient both as a means of getting inside but also as a means of taking in his surroundings.

Maybe it was because subconsciously he was already looking for him, but as Subject Three fluttered over the red coloured rooves toward the square, he picked out Kaeya stumbling away from the Angel’s Share. His first thought was that perhaps he had gotten injured somehow, after all Subject Three had also woken up sore and disheveled, but it was also possible that Kaeya was affected by the same kind of drink as everyone else in the tavern. Either way, he needed to get back inside the apartment to retrieve his clothes in order to continue his mission.

Remaining safely up in the air, far above Kaeya’s head, he followed him right back to his building again. Unfortunately, there was no way he’d make it down in time to follow him through the door now, so his only other option was to search for an open window. Circling the building was proving to be a fruitless endeavour until a pair of shutters suddenly flew open, and low and behold it was Kaeya’s room on the other side. Frankly, Subject Three was a prodigy, his master clearly couldn’t have chosen a WhopperFlower more geniusly gifted in the art of infiltration.

He only had to perch on the flower box for a couple of minutes before Kaeya had shucked off a few layers and collapsed onto the bed… which was actually a problem, Subject Three noted as he entered the room and resumed his usual form, because his clothes were on the bed… under Kaeya. Retrieving them was out of the question, Kaeya was too heavy to pull them out from without waking him… Subject Three knew this for sure because he had already tried, resulting only in the whopper skittering under the bed when Kaeya groaned and shifted.

This wasn’t about to stop him though, he had already devised another, equally brilliant plan: There was a large, potted plant on the floor near the bedroom door, inside it was a big plant with fanning leaves. Easy. He slunk out from beneath the bed frame and reached up with his leafy appendages to take hold of it by the base and rip it free. It took much of the dirt with it so he did his best to shake most of it back into the pot before hopping back to the window and chucking it out.

Phase one had been executed perfectly. The real plant was gone and Kaeya was still fast asleep! Now was the easy part, hopping into the pot and nestling himself into the soil to take the form of the evicted plant and wait. Once Kaeya woke up and left the building, he could hop back out, grab his clothes and… … he.. didn’t think any farther ahead than that. This soil was very comfortable though and the size of the pot was actually pretty cozy, before long Subject Three had dozed off as well.

It might have been better for his initial plan if all the ruckus of Kaeya waking up in the morning hadn’t roused him and he’d remained quiet when he was called out. Unfortunately, it turned out that Subject Three had not been thorough enough with his disposal of the other plant. The floor was dirty and the plant was right there outside the window, all Kaeya had to do was look down! Foolish mistake after foolish mistake were what got him caught the first time, and this time was no different it seemed. Should he take his punishment and just return to his master in Dragonspine after all, accepting his failure?

Kaeya’s reaction didn’t seem aggressive though, he didn’t sound angry… he sounded more or less the same as usual. Maybe he really wasn’t that bothered about Subject Three’s identity, maybe Subject Three had already gone above and beyond and found an ally. Ignoring Kaeya’s objections, he dropped his disguise, wriggled free of the potting soil, and hopped out of the pot, nuzzling up to his leg with a soft squeak. Even without the drink from last night, he was still getting that weird feeling of wanting to be physically close to the human.

The feeling of Kaeya’s hands on him again made his skin prickle… but in a good way, making Subject Three squirm a little in his grasp. Kaeya also said he was allowed to continue his mission! Even though Kaeya didn’t think his master would be coming back… but that was the next step.. so he had to.

“Let’s clean you off then,” Kaeya sighed, carrying him towards a different room of the apartment.

As a mimic, Subject Three was sensitive to minute changes in demeanour and something about Kaeya seemed softer today. Both his tone and his motions as he cleaned and watered Subject Three, adjusting the temperature to his preference and drying him off in a plush blanket that smelled like Kaeya. Obviously he couldn’t burrow into it, but he could try.

When they were done, he was placed on the bed with his discarded clothes from last night while Kaeya cleaned up the floor then left, albeit awkwardly, to clean himself off next. Unfortunately, Subject Three still didn’t know how to put on any of these clothes. He did resume his mimicked form of Subject One and kind of picked up some of the garments, but he didn’t even want to wear all these stupid clothes again! He hated every single piece and still remained at a loss on how to wear any of them right up until Kaeya reappeared… in nothing but the towel Subject Three had dried off in.

Even last night Kaeya hadn’t fully undressed. He had never seen Kaeya fully naked, he noted, staring down at the towel while he was interrogated about his undressed state. How strange that he wanted to see… Subject Three watched intently as Kaeya moved about the room collecting his clothes, but to the whopper’s dismay he disappeared briefly into the bathroom before returning again, clothed.

Again, Kaeya was gentle, despite some frustration creeping into his tone when Subject Three voiced his disdain. In the end, Kaeya pulled every layer back onto him and he was once again stuck in Albedo’s stupid, stifling cloth prison of sensory despair. On the bright side, he was heading back to his mission despite his short comings, alongside Kaeya… but… no matter how close he walked to the knight, Kaeya never put his hand on him again the whole way there. Last night Subject Three had been tense to his touches, but today he was starved for them.

The walk this time was made in silence, only interrupted when brief greetings had to be exchanged with the humans milling about their morning business. Kaeya’s pace was brisk, challenging for Subject Three to match on his shorter legs and leaving him a little out of breath by the time they reached the Knights of Favonius headquarters. Learning to walk in this body was hard enough, but keeping up with Kaeya really put his skills to work.

When the two arrived inside, there were already people in the main hall. One of them was the blonde woman from yesterday, the other was a woman who Subject Three hadn’t seen before. She was also tall, and looked even taller with her big purple hat. He was sure thankful he didn’t have have to wear a hat. They both turned as the doors opened. “Ah, there he is,” the unfamiliar woman said, folding her arms. “You see? You worry far too much.”

“Were you looking for us?” Kaeya asked putting a hand on his hip. “I was running a bit late this morning, I certainly didn’t mean to make the Acting Grand Master worried on my behalf.~”

“Albedo” nodded. “Sorry, we were busy,” he agreed. He could also help Kaeya cover up why they were late!

The woman in the big hat raised her eyes brows, lifting a hand to not so subtly hide her smile. “Ohhh.”

Kaeya turned to Subject Three with a slightly tight smile. “Why don’t you head to your lab now?”

“Albedo” nodded obediently and scurried up to his office to… probably hide for the rest of the day, or so he’d planned anyway.

After pacing around the room, pulling the books off the shelf, opening them, failing to make sense of the scribbles and dropping them on the floor, staring out the window, sitting at the desk, sitting on the floor, staring out the window while sitting at the desk, and poking at some of the more dangerous looking items in the room for a while, he was starting to get antsy. Staying cooped up in this room just didn’t work for him. For the most part, whatever his master had done to better placate him had accomplished its purpose quite well, although he had some adverse reactions to certain parts of coexisting with humans, he didn’t feel such a strong urge to lash out and was generally level headed enough to reason… but spending time in this room felt like it was just undoing it all.

In the end, Subject Three decided it would be best for him to do as his master instructed and take a walk out to the alchemy bench; and so, leaving the office much messier than he’d found it, he headed down the stairs and back out the doors, walking along the stone roads towards the square. As expected, standing at the alchemy bench was the plain looking man.

For a while Subject Three just stood near the railing overlooking the square, as he pondered whether the office had left him in an appropriate mental state to handle whatever conversation he’d be dragged into if he approached the bench. Still… could he really just loiter around up here? Aside from looking suspicious, he’d probably be noticed sooner or later anyway if he continued to just stand around like this. Eventually, Subject Three made the executive decision to bite the proverbial bullet and make his way around to the stairs.

Mr. Alchemy Bench hadn’t noticed him yet when he’d first descended near the building across from him, the one that smelled of food, busy talking to a lady human who was also standing at the bench. They were the least of what held Subject Three’s attention now though as walking up from the entrance were a trio of familiar faces; his master had returned! Strangely though… the one he was accompanied by was Subject One, Albedo, and he was no longer donning the appearance of the Chief Alchemist himself. Presently, he was a tall man with brown hair, long enough to be pulled back in a short pony tail; it made no difference of course, Subject Three could recognize his master right away— and that child! That was the little human he took before!

How strange, as far as Subject Three knew, this wasn’t exactly how his master had described the next stage of their plan playing out. Well, he would just have to ask him! The breath he drew to call out was cut short though when he was suddenly grabbed, one hand over his mouth and the other around his waist, yanking him back around the side of the building and out of sight- and no doubt getting a nasty ice burn in the process. After a pained hiss following Subject Three’s adverse cryo reaction to being grabbed so suddenly came Kaeya’s voice in a low whisper. “Easy now… come with me.”

Obviously Subject Three struggled, his master was back which meant their plan was supposed to move forward to the next stage… whatever that was. He needed to tell him how he’d done as he was told, without even attacking anyone!

“If you rush in now you’ll only get yourself caught… maybe even killed,~” Kaeya pointed out. “It would certainly look strange if there were suddenly two Albedos in the square, wouldn’t it?”

Subject Three finally relaxed a little in Kaeya’s hold, causing the grip on him to slacken slightly in turn. He raise a hand to pull Kaeya’s off his face. “But my master is back,” he explained.

“Your master,” Kaeya reiterated, arching a brow down at him as he tugged him further behind the building lest the trio spot them on their way to the stairs. “Do you mean to tell me that Albedo is a fake as well?”

The mimic frowned a little, shaking his head and fully turning to Kaeya now that the grip on him was loose enough. It was probably only to ensure he didn’t try to run off, but Subject Three revelled in the continued contact of Kaeya’s hand on his waist nonetheless. “That isn’t my master, the tall man with them is.”

Kaeya seemed surprised, granted Subject Three was surprised to see his master looking that way as well. “Isn’t that Joel’s father?”

“Who’s Joel?”

“The young boy with them-… his father went missing on Dragonspine while looking for the summit, he was presumed dead,” Kaeya explained.

“I don’t know about that,” Subject Three replied. “I just know that’s my master, and that’s the little human I got in trouble for taking.”

Kaeya frowned pensively. “Albedo is back and your master has a new identity, doesn’t that mean you’ve been discarded?”

Did it mean that? Just because his master chose a new approach didn’t mean there was no more plan though! “I still have to talk to him,” Subject Three stated firmly.

“Not like this,” Kaeya said even more firmly.. successfully overruling Subject Three unfortunately. “If you’d really like to speak with that man, I can facilitate a meeting between the two of you in private.~”

Even though he wasn’t that gung-ho on compromising, this seemed like a sensible approach to the matter as far as Subject Three could tell. “I… okay,” he conceded, not without a bit of a pout though. “When can I talk to him then?”

“Tonight perhaps, but you can’t keep standing in public like this. The Traveller and Paimon returned to Mondstadt last night as well and while I doubt those two would have stuck around long enough to still be here, I wouldn’t risk running into them if I were you,” Kaeya answered.

“I can’t go back to hiding in the office though,” the whopper pointed out.

“You can wait in my apartment then, if you promise to behave yourself.~ I’ll be back when my shift ends.”

Ah, he was allowed to keep staying with Kaeya? Subject Three perked up again at this. “Yes, I’ll be good,” he confirmed eagerly. Following instructions well meant rewards, that was how his master trained him initially… even if the reward was mostly lack of punishment. If he was good for Kaeya wouldn’t he also be rewarded though?

It was lucky that the building which Kaeya lived in was accessible via some side stairs and the street it was on was residential and out of the way, which kept them out of sight for the most part. Kaeya had accompanied him up just to unlock the door but headed back out immediately after, leaving Subject Three alone in the room. Another enclosed space he had to figure out how to deal with… but this time he couldn’t throw any books on the floor or Kaeya would be mad. Even though he wanted to please Kaeya similarly to his master, it wasn’t quite the same; he had to follow his master’s orders or he would be punished and maybe even killed, but for Kaeya it wasn’t because he was afraid of him… he just desperately craved the knight’s acknowledgement.

That being said, Subject Three needed to occupy himself in some way that wasn’t tearing apart Kaeya’s living space. The room with the comfy pot was where he was most familiar with so he decided to stay in there. Ideally he’d just get back in the pot and go to sleep, not having to be shaped like a human would be an amazing first step… but he was still stuck in these stupid clothes. He couldn’t even remember how Kaeya had removed them last night, a lot of things were fuzzy from last night actually. Kaeya had put them on for him this morning though… could he just do that backwards? He’d missed most of it but maybe he could still piece it together since it was fresh in his mind.

There was only one way to find out. Subject Three took a seat on the edge of Kaeya’s bed to begin. He distinctly remembered that the gloves and boots went on last, as he recalled being disappointed after thinking he might’ve gotten out of wearing them this time. With enough tugging at various parts, he managed to get one glove off, and using both his freed hand and his teeth he got the other off too. The gauntlets were still on but they didn’t bother him as much, just having the ability to feel with his hands was enough for now. The shoes were similar to the gloves, in that they mostly just involved pulling but he spent most of his time rolling on his back while he struggled to yank the things off, leaving him quite winded by the end.

The discarded items were launched ruthlessly off the bed, miraculously failing to hit anything but the floor. All of his struggling had even slipped his belt off his shoulder which left it sitting near his waist where it was catching on his dumb coat’s stupid decorations. Pulling didn’t do much to help the coat though, no matter which way he pulled, it remained caught on some part of his body. Eventually, he gave up, he was satisfied just being out of the boots and gloves, and frankly he was tired after all that struggling.

With a sigh, Subject Three flopped back onto the bed again, using his heels to push himself as he shimmied up to the pillows and— his coat moved! It slipped down his shoulders just like belt! He kept shuffling his body up until he was all the way on the pillows and his coat was almost at his elbows, allowing him to lift his arms out and push the whole thing, belt and all, past his hips and kick it right off the bed. Being in only his shirt and bottoms felt freeing in itself at this point, and he finally relaxed back into the pillow taking a long breath and… noticing… they smelled like Kaeya… he turned his face more towards the pillow he was laying on a breathed in again. They really smelled like Kaeya.

Scent wasn’t a sense he relied on much in his normal life, sight and touch were his primary means of experiencing the world as a WhopperFlower. Ever since he’d started his mission in Mondstadt he was much more aware of the smells around him, and there were so many different ones too in a way that just didn’t exist on Dragonspine. Last night though, the one scent he distinctly remembered was Kaeya and how he smelled when he’d carried Subject Three back from the Angel’s Share or how he’d smelled the same yet… a little bit different looming over him on the bed, sweat glistening on his body.

Even though the smell lingering on the pillows was making his face and body feel warm again, he just wanted to sink his face deeper into the pillows. Being surrounded by Kaeya’s scent like this felt so good to him, it made him feel like Kaeya was touching him again… or.. not exactly; it felt the way Kaeya’s hand had made him want to be touched more, and it made his breath shorten and his thighs squirm. The smell alone was making him hard in his pants but Kaeya wasn’t even here to help him, how was he supposed to find the same release? He couldn’t go looking for him when he wasn’t allowed to leave the apartment.

Subject Three whimpered into the pillows, reaching his own hand down to desperately palm the growing bulge between his legs, still trapped behind two layers of clothes he didn’t know how to get out of. It didn’t feel the same as when Kaeya did it, Kaeya’s motion were confident and deliberate, and felt so much better with nothing in between. He desperately needed some kind of friction but he didn’t know how to get it himself, he couldn’t grip his dick through his pants the way Kaeya had without them but he couldn’t pull his pants down past his hips without opening them and he was completely stumped on the button!

With a frustrated groan Subject Three rolled onto his stomach instead, pressing his face into the pillows with his arms tucked underneath them. From this angle, he found he could sort of squirm his hips against the duvet for some kind of stimulation but… it just wasn’t enough. Still, that didn’t stop him from trying anyway, desperate pants and whimpers muffled by Kaeya’s pillow left damp by his breaths. Despite the wetness seeping into the fabric of his tighter inner pants, his needy squirming and rutting against the mattress just wasn’t enough to relieve him.

By the time the sounds of a key clicking in the front door caught his attention, Subject Three had accomplished little else than reducing himself to a flushed, panting mess… and he was supposed to meet with his master this evening! Ah.. would Kaeya be mad at him? In the end he’d still been bad. In a feeble attempt to mask his state, the whopper rolled onto his back again and lifted his knees to squeeze his thighs shut as the bedroom door opened.

[abyssruler]

5 SUNDAYS OF KINKTOBER

liturgy — zhongli, raiden ei, childe, kazuha, albedo, imposter albedo/subject two, scaramouche x fem!afab!reader

creed — i am so going to hell for this

communion — comment or send an ask to be added to the taglist!

1ST MASS ♱ zhongli & ei

homily — you’ve been the most devoted servant of the anemo archon since the end of the war, not noticing the heated looks by two gods that have followed you for millennia. in your moment of loss at the sudden slumber of barbatos after the battle with durin, they don’t hesitate to take the opportunity to convert you to their religion.

dubcon, power imbalance, sub reader, praise, subtle manipulation, fingering, oral f-receiving, dom ei and zhongli, implied venti x reader

2ND MASS ♱ childe

homily — he often wonders how you managed to end up as a harbinger. you’re so sweet and naive, letting your guard down around him and always inquiring about his health and wellbeing whenever he goes on lengthy missions, greeting him with a smile when he returns to zapolyarny palace. archons, you’re practically begging to be taken advantage of. he hopes the tsaritsa won’t mind if he temporarily takes her 12th harbinger out of commission for, say, nine months?

dubcon, breeding, mentions of pregnancy, humiliation, manipulation, oral f-receiving

3RD MASS ♱ kazuha

homily — he tells himself it’s fine that you left him. except, that’s not true in the slightest sense. he wants you back, needs you back like dying man in the desert looking for an oasis. now, if you had just stopped seeing that man who lives down by the road, he wouldn’t have ended up taking such drastic measures. you don’t want him anymore, but it’s fine, he’ll just have to make you see things his way. you’re so kind, he’s sure you’ll forgive him for it.

yandere kazuha, dubcon, hate sex, stalking, oral f-receiving

4TH MASS ♱ albedo & subject two

homily — your creator has told you countless times how dangerous the outside world is. blizzards and monsters and every bad thing you could imagine all lay outside the little cabin you call a home. however, albedo failed to include in his calculations just how curious you truly are. it’s fine, you tell yourself, he’s not even the slightest bit mad to see you out and about, except… there’s something strange about your master’s behavior today.

homunculus reader, dubcon, coercion, manipulation, voyeurism

5TH MASS ♱ scaramouche

homily — you look good when you cry in the middle of the hall after he deliberately humiliates you in front of everyone. but he thinks you look best when you look up at him through teary eyes as you choked on his fingers in the school’s public restroom.

modern au, college au, bully scara, possessive scara, noncon, manipulation, blackmail, degradation, humiliation, dacryphilia, oral m-receiving, semi-public sex, nonconsensual filming, spit kink